Origins
by EntendulesDeuxSens
Summary: A newly formed team getting to know each other a little better and a leader getting to know them a lot better.


_**Author's Note:**_ _This fell right into my head and I've been having fun with playing with backstory and Robin's detective skills. It wanted to be written. I present it to you for judgement, and I will probably follow this story up with other one-shots as they occur to me. More to come._

Being out in uniform in broad daylight is still weird for me. I'm not sure I like it. Jump is so different from Gotham, where I'd have been arrested if any of the cops had caught me, and they'd tried a lot of times. I would have ended up in juvy, taken away from Bruce's care. Bruce would have gotten thrown in jail, and once our identities got out, I doubt either of us would have lasted all that long. Avoiding police is a matter of survival to me, and even though the police chief here has personally assured me that as long as we continue to follow our no-killing rule, he's happy to have the help, I'm still a little uncomfortable with the whole deal. The Mayor has set aside a fund for collateral damage to the city and has insured just about everything here, though I absolutely refuse to accept any of the money she's offered us as a 'reward.' It feels too much like a bribe, and I'm not interested on being on anyone's political payroll. I've met enough political figures at Bruce's parties to not want to get involved. I'm used to stealth and secrecy, but it seems like this team is going to be doing things a little bit differently.

Things like getting pizza in full uniform. It makes sense, I guess. I can take off my mask and hide in plain sight, but I'm the only one who can. They have no choice but to go out in public as they are, and Dick Grayson hanging out with a team of superheroes will answer more questions than it raises, which brings us back to the whole 'Bruce getting arrested' thing. So I'm stuck as Robin, though I don't stand out as much in uniform when I'm with them. Cyborg is, well, a cyborg, Starfire is an orange alien, Raven is gray-skinned, and Beast Boy is green.

Cyborg is talking around a mouthful of pizza. "Anyway, it exploded, and I got caught in the crossfire. Almost died. My father saved me, but at a cost." He waved a hand over his chest. "A lot of the human parts of me are still there, but they're internal. Lungs, heart, that kind of thing. It's taking some getting used to."

I'd heard about something like that a few years back. An explosion at S.T.A.R. Labs. We'd had an eye on the head scientist, Silas Stone for a while, because he was working on technology that could be potentially very dangerous. He'd gone public about his wife and son being killed in the blast, but I'm not so sure about that now. Cyborg's technology does bear some of the traits of theirs, and I wonder exactly how much of what Silas said about his son being dead is true. Victor Stone, 15 at the time of the accident, good grades, possible career in football in his future, technology whiz. Hmm, and didn't Cyborg turn his hand into a sonic cannon during that first fight surprisingly fast.

Cyborg shifts in his seat, and I'm guessing that it's because he's uncomfortable with the looks that everyone is giving him. He really doesn't like being stared at, and I wonder if it's because a lot of people stare or if it's because he can't bear to face that he's not entirely human anymore. I don't know how I would handle something like that. He points to Raven with the crust of his pizza. "Okay little lady, your turn."

Raven raises an eyebrow. "I don't do backstory."

"Why? You too good to share?" Cyborg challenges.

I'm about to point out that he offered us the information, and that Raven doesn't have to say anything she doesn't want to when she bristles. "I was raised by monks in a place called Azarath. It's a realm between worlds. I have a lot of training in controlling my emotions and meditating and learned a lot of magic. Next." I've never heard of Azarath, but I make a mental note to look it up when we get home. The computer systems in the Tower are all Cyborg's design, but my laptop is Wayne-tech and I have a remote login to get into the Batcomputer. Alternate dimensions don't usually brush against ours, but I'm about as paranoid as a guy can get and I don't like the idea of being caught napping if someone from there decides to come here. That's a philosophy Bruce has ingrained into me. Expect the worst and you'll be prepared if it comes to pass. Contingencies on top of contingencies. Raven is quiet, and she keeps to herself a lot, but I get the sense that she wants to be a part of this team, maybe more than anyone else does. I don't know the rate at which time passes on Azarath, but she looks fourteen or fifteen. I wonder if that desire to belong is because she didn't have much of a childhood, or if its because she's never had a place that she really fit in. "What about you Starfire?"

"I am from the planet Tamaran. It is a wondrous place." She doesn't seem to be interested in sharing more information than that. I've never heard of Tamaran either, which means it's not under the jurisdiction of the Lanterns. Starfire came here knowing how to fight, and she's a teenager like the rest of us. It could be a cultural thing, or it could be that the people of her planet are trained for war because they're in the middle of one. If that's the case, it must be a big one, because most people don't send teenagers into battle. I'll have to ask Hal about it at some point, see what he can tell me about conflicts in that sector.

I swear I don't mean to do this. I'm supposed to be hanging out and getting lunch, not assessing threats to my planet and reading too much into what they're telling me. It just happens. I'm trained to notice people's tells and read between the lines. It's not something that I do on purpose. I want to trust them, but I don't. Not yet.

Beast Boy leans back against the railing of the balcony we're sitting on. "Well, I got sick when I was really little, and it was something that there's no known cure for. That's how I ended up with powers, my mom and dad trying to save me. I'm still basically human. I just have a little extra now." As if in demonstration, fur and claws ripple across his skin and vanish just as quickly. "Anyway, a couple years later, I ended up going it alone, which is kind of how I fell in with Mento and the Doom Patrol. That didn't work out all that great. Mento's a good leader, but he's also really stubborn and demanding." Interesting that he skips over saying anything more about his parents. Cyborg did the same thing, but with him, it was _my father_. It implies distance. 'Mom and Dad' is closeness. Family. Or maybe that's just my definition, a way I use in my head to separate Bruce from my parents.

I snort. "I know what that's like. Batman's catchphrase was ' _do it better.'_ Fired me for getting shot, so I struck out on my own." It explains a lot about why he's so eager to please. I treated Bruce the same way when I first started. Four people are staring at me."What?"

"Your _K'norfka_ Batman set you on fire for being injured?"

That makes me laugh. "No, it means that he told me he didn't want me to work with him anymore. He dismissed me." Her face clears. No one else's does.

"So you're _that_ Robin," Cyborg says.

"Do you know any other Robins?" I seriously want to know, because I'm not going to be happy if someone's running around using my name.

Beast Boy has that hero-worship look on his face again. "Wait, so you don't have _any_ powers?"

I'm not sure I like the way he says it, though I guess technically I'm the only one on the team without them. "No powers, _lots_ of training. I'm completely human."

"Woah," Beast Boy breathes, and the awe in his voice makes me feel a little bit better.

Cyborg throws an arm around my shoulders. I'm surprised by how heavy it is. "Okay, Boy Wonder, we all did the backstory thing. Spill."

I don't trust them yet. But I want to. "Well, I was born in a circus-"

Cyborg pushes me away with a chuckle, "Fine, fine, keep your secrets. I've heard how close to the vest Batman plays it. You don't have to tell us."

Part of me wants to protest that I'm not lying, but frankly, if my Flying Grayson days ever do come out, this will be the greatest practical joke ever. I shake my head and smile.


End file.
